Writing (mostly) about disruptive trends and technologies in the 21st century

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Web Secret #19 - ChaCha

Ever have the fantasy that you could ask any question in the world and a human being would answer?

Your dream is a reality: enter ChaCha http://answers.chacha.com/

ChaCha is like having a smart friend you can call or text for answers on your cell phone anytime for free! ChaCha allows people with any mobile phone device - from basic flip phones to advanced smart phones - to ask any question in conversational English and receive an accurate answer as a text message in just a few minutes. ChaCha is free for the consumer.

Have a question?

Simply text your question to 242242 (spells ‘ChaCha’) or call 1-800-2ChaCha (800-224-2242) from your mobile phone to ask any question. To respond to user queries, ChaCha enlists about 15,000 independent contractors, or guides, throughout the United States, often segmented by geographic expertise and paid based on accurate answers. An algorithm is also employed, so questions that have previously been asked and accurately answered can be recycled.

ChaCha is much more helpful to mobile phone users than typical computer-driven search engines. Simply ask your question like you are talking to a smart friend and ChaCha’s advanced technology instantly routes it to the most knowledgeable person on that topic in their Guide community. Your answer is then returned to your phone as a text message within a few minutes.

What types of questions can you ask?

Just about anything under the sun. The ChaCha website lists numerous examples http://answers.chacha.com/?page_id=21 across a number of categories including health, technology, travel, lifestyle, and more.

Sample:Question: What is the current commute time on Interstate 90 from O’Hare airport to downtown Chicago?Answer: It is slow (20-30 mph) until the Edens Kennedy junction, then it is a parking lot. Take Rand to Northwest HWY, to Elston Ave.

Question: What is the average salary of a personal assistant?Answer: It depends on the industry, an assistant for the CEO or top corporate is over 60K on average while a typical salary is under 40K.

In addition to informational requests and queries about the weather and directory assistance, about 15-20 percent of the questions are transactional in nature, such as finding a restaurant or information about purchasing something.

One of ChaCha’s biggest assets is that you don’t need to open a browser on your phone and navigate the Web. Also, because it’s accessible via text or voice, there is nothing to download and it works on virtually every phone, regardless of carrier.

1 comment:

Very cool. I use ChaCha to for a lot of different things, like weather, finding phone numbers, getting directions, answering trivia, or just random stuff when I'm bored. It's like having someone do an internet search and just send you a text with the answer, very very easy. Everyone should try it, it's free!